Sites That Warm My Cockles.

Dr Ian West’s site dedicated to the geology of the Wessex Coast of England.

http://www.soton.ac.uk/~imw/index.htm

Why? Because I’ve always been interested in geology, particularly sedimentology. This extremely comprehensive site can fill an entire evening for me. WanderingL and I have even visited some of the places he’s studied. (I’m such a creep that I brought a really big hat with me and made my elder(ly) sister use it to carry all the rocks and fossils I collected. Sucker!)

The image above is an aerial photo of Chesil Beach, a tombolo that connects the Isle of Portland to the mainland at Weymouth. The picture is from Dr West's site and you really need to click on it to get the full effect. On the day my sister and I were there, there was such an onshore wind blowing that the spindrift was as high as the island beyond.

Geoffrey Chaucer Hath a Blog

http://houseoffame.blogspot.com/

Why? It’s just a total hoot. The most hilarious items are the movie reviews, but the bits about his ‘wyffe’ and his ‘werke’ are also worthy of a change of underwear. I actually purchased several of his T-shirts, one of which reads, “Ich Pwne Noobs” Don’t miss it!

Scorp10n Bowl

http://scorpionbowl.blogspot.com/

Why? It’s a great Left Coast blog by Rich Simon. (very refreshing to a ‘Blue’ woman, trapped in a bright Red county in the suburbs of New York City.) Unlike so many other political bloggers, he doesn’t rant or spin or froth at the mouth. (As I am wont to do.) He provides actual facts and figures to back his conclusions. If you catch him on a really good day, you might get a little poetry or literature thrown in there too. I don’t visit this site as often as you should, because I get it delivered to my inbox, fresh out of the oven.

Said the Gramophone

http://www.saidthegramophone.com/

Why? There are scads of MP3 blogs out there, and a lot of them are really good. This is my favorite. It’s an interesting blend of all things musical. You never know what you’ll find there. A good site to get lost on.

Wayne’s Word – An On-line Textbook of Natural History.

http://waynesword.palomar.edu/worthypl.htm

Why? If you have any interest at all in botany/biology, this site will keep you reading long enough for your butt to fall asleep. It’s written with enthusiasm, and is clearly understandable to the casual reader. It’s a treasure trove of information. Read it and learn.

Arts & Letters Daily

http://www.aldaily.com/

Why? It’s a well-chosen variety of articles on diverse subjects from reputable sources. It’ll keep you up-to-date on politics, philosophy, literature, theater and all manner of other subjects. If you want to converse intelligently at parties, read ‘Arts & Letters Daily’.

Robert Krampf’s Science Videos

http://www.krampf.com/experiment_vid.html

Why? If you like ‘Mythbusters’, you’ll like Robert Krampf. His videos are often messy, sometimes explosive, always interesting. A good site for kids, but adults will like it too. (Editor's Note: This is a 'Pay' site, but it's got plenty of free stuff to watch and read.)

I’ve got lots more, but my fingers are tired. Anyway, I have a (C)update to publish, so I’ve got to go and scrape the barnacles from the hull.

-Maggie